A Midsummer Night's Romp
by FredLives2007
Summary: Just a glimpse at the events which might have transpired at Bill and Fleur's wedding had it not been crashed by Death Eaters.
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own the world of Harry Potter or any of its characters. **

**All those rights go to J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers, and anyone else I should mention.**

**Also, special thanks to Billy for this one.**

Bill and Fleur had had the most beautiful wedding that any of the witches and wizards at the reception could remember. All throughout the enchanted reception tent, erected in the middle of the Weasley's large garden, guests were drinking their fill of sparkling champagne, talking, laughing, and whirling about the dance floor in their most elaborate and frivolous dress robes. The warm night was perfectly clear, and the moon and stars shone brightly on the merry scene below. And none were making merrier than the most mischievous and spritely pair ever to be reared under the Weasley name, Fred and George.

"Blimey, George, Bill just set the bar bloody high for spouses, wouldn't you agree?" Fred asked his brother, eyeing Bill and Fleur waltzing in the middle of the floor and throwing back the last of the contents of his champagne flute.

"Yeah…," George replied, twirling his own flute, "we'll definitely have to look beyond the old Hogwarts crop if we want to rival his success."

"My thoughts precisely."

Fred took another long sip from his flute which had just magically refilled itself for the eighth time, then directing George's attention to the other side of the enchanted canopy, he pointed out a small huddle of breathtakingly beautiful young girls. There were four of them, and they all looked to be around the age of eighteen, with long, flowing, silver-blonde hair; fair, luminescent skin, and bright, icy blue eyes. One of them noticed the twins gazing at them and immediately informed her companions of their admirers, causing them all to burst into a fit of giggles, flashing radiant smiles in their direction.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" George questioned with an impish grin spreading over his cheeks.

"I certainly hope so, my most holy of brothers. I think it's time we gave our new veela in-laws a proper welcome to the family."

The twins made their way confidently through the colorful sea of dancers and came to stand next to the angelic assembly. They straightened their backs and each mustered identical genteel expressions, like a pair of courtly squires. The girls laughed even more at this ludicrous show of chivalry as the red-headed brothers took each of their hands in turn and pressed them to their lips, addressing them with silky smooth voices.

"Enchanté, mademoiselles," George drawled, "What might your names be?"

A fresh wave of giggling erupted among them as they jabbered excitedly to each other. Then the tallest among them stepped forward and, smiling brightly, gestured to herself and then each of the other girls in turn, speaking each name in a heavy French accent, "Mite, Poisfleur, Toile D'araigné, et Grainemoutarde. We are seesters."

"What a coincidence!" George exclaimed, "My name is George, and this is my brother, Fred. If you look closely, you can tell we bear a slight resemblance."

"And where, exactly, is a clan of beauteous nymphs such as yourselves prone to wander this evening?" Fred inquired, raising an inviting eyebrow, evoking more chuckles.

"Everywhere, I zuppose," Mite replied with a shrug. "We 'ave traveled all zhe way around zhe world wiz our cousin Fleur, and we 'ave been azzisting her all wiz 'er dress and train. We even walked all over zhe 'ills zhere, picking flowers for 'er bouquet."

"Well we had a hand in making our dear brother look right dashing as he stood next to your lovely cousin today, didn't we Fred?"

"Indeed. Had we not found the cufflinks we hid from him three years ago, he would have had to use Dad's…"

"Rhinestones… not exactly the most aesthetic accessories," George supplied with a grimace.

Mite gazed up at the pair of them with a knowing smirk, her sisters watching from behind with amused expressions.

"Fleur 'as told us all about you two," she began. "You are quite zhe pranksters in zhe family are you not?"

"What, _us_?" George demanded, throwing a hand over his heart and widening his eyes in mock shock.

"My dear lady, that is poppycock!"

"Absolutely outrageous!"

"Never in our lives…" The twins were fuming in pretend outrage, much to the delight of their captivated audience who were now beside themselves with laughter.

At that moment however, before they could continue their charms, Bill Weasley popped out of the dense crowd of dancers and made his way swiftly to their side. He seemed exasperated.

"Fred, George, could I have a word?"

Fred and George were taken aback for a moment, then seeing the earnest expression on their brother's face, decided they had better go see what was worrying him.

"We'll be back to talk more, yeah?" George said to the French girls.

"There's still lots more of our culture we've yet to share with you," Fred added with a wink.

The two of them walked off with Bill a few paces away from the clamor of the canopy until he rounded on them and spoke seriously,

"There's been some trouble with Fleur."

"What, having problems with the wifey already?" George scoffed.

"Don't tell me she's unsatisfied!" Fred chimed in, "You're a bloody Weasley! You have to uphold the family reputation!"

"There are certain expectations that come from being born from parents who fostered seven children, you know," George added.

"Oh will you two shut up? It's nothing like that," (Fred and George exchanged smirks), "No, she has gone and done something very dangerous and won't listen to reason to set it right."

"What has she done, placed a bid on Ravenclaw's vanity mirror?"

"Smashed all of Mum's Celestina Warbeck records?"

The twins were doubled over, cackling with laughter and leaning on each other for support, until, with a flick of Bill's wand, they were immediately silenced as their mouths sealed themselves shut.

"Now, listen numbskulls," Bill hissed at their shocked faces, "this is serious. She's gone and taken in a baby goblin."

He waited until he could see the realization set into their eyes before he released the spell, leaving them gasping and sputtering.

"A _goblin_!"

"Is she mental!"

"How did she _get_ it?"

"Why would she _want_ it?"

"Don't tell me she's kidnapped it!"

"No, no, don't be thick," Bill cut them off, "It's the son of a female goblin, Griena, who befriended Fleur a few weeks after she started working for Gringotts."

"A _female_ goblin? Blimey, I didn't even know those existed!" Fred exclaimed.

"Of course they exist, you prat," Bill said impatiently, "how else do you think they could reproduce?"

The twins opened their mouths simultaneously to argue, but Bill cut them off with a wave of his hand.

"Look, it doesn't matter. The truth is that goblins are actually quite backwards according to our standards of gender equality. The reason neither of you have ever seen a female is that they aren't allowed to work any job that involves face-to-face interaction with customers. Their forced to work the most dangerous and undesirable occupations of the mines, like training the dragons and setting curses on the vaults," Bill spoke with disgust etched on his scarred, freckled face.

"Blimey…" began George, and Fred finished the thought for him,

"That's awful."

"Yeah, well anyway, this goblin, Griena, she took a liking to Fleur because she was sympathetic of her situation. They had her mining ignis gems, working twelve hours a day with no break."

Fred and George looked appalled, but Bill continued before they could interject.

"They had some sort of feminine connection. The female goblins are actually much friendlier than the males. But she became pregnant, never told who the father was, and Fleur took her in while she was in labor. The baby was healthy, but Griena didn't make it. That was a week ago."

"So… so Fleur took the baby then?" Fred asked solemnly.

"Exactly," Bill nodded, "She's named the baby Indien, and he's been at Shell Cottage ever since."

"Is it there _now_?" George questioned incredulously.

"No, of course not. We wouldn't leave it alone. We've set up a little playpen for him in the garage. He's really taken a liking to playing with Dad's rubber duck collection." Bill smiled and allowed himself a chuckle.

"Well Bill… I mean, you can't really blame her for wanting to look after him can you? After all, the thing's an orphan." Fred bit his lip and looked to his twin for support.

"Yeah, you can't just throw it out on the streets."

"You two just don't understand," Bill was shaking his head. "Do you realize what will happen if the rest of the goblins find out we're harboring one of their young? They would be ballistic! They would set their wrath against our whole family. You two have never seen an angry goblin, but trust me, it's not pretty. They have a history of doing unimaginable things to their own kind in the goblin wars; can you imagine what a band of tossed off goblins would do to a wizard?

"But I know of a good, decent goblin family that I met in Egypt. They would take him in, and raise him well. He'll be much better off with them than he would with us anyway. But Fleur won't have any of it. She seems dead set on keeping him…. So I need you two to help me convince her."

"You're asking _us_?"

"Why?" The twins looked utterly bemused. Bill had never asked any sort of favors from them before.

"I'm asking the entire family. She may be able to refute me, but if we are all adamant enough, she'll have to listen.

"Just please talk to her. See what you can do."

And with that, Bill was off, disappearing back under the canopy into the slowly dying party consuming the dance floor.

Fred and George looked at each other, and each of their lips spread into identical toothy grins. They then immediately put their heads together and started whispering excitedly.

"It sounds as though our elder brother is in quite a pickle."

"And the rest of the family as well."

"I do believe dear William wants us to accomplish this task by any means necessary."

"What we need to pacify Fleur is—"

"A distraction!" they both exclaimed the last part of their exchange together.

"Oh, and I know just the thing," beamed George.

"No you don't, because I do," Fred retorted.

"The love potion!" once again, they spoke simultaneously.

"You know, we really creep me out sometimes with the whole twin telepathy thing," Fred murmured.

"Forget about it. Do you really think it's ready though? We've only just finished the formula. We haven't even tested it yet."

"Well this will be a much less awkward test than us trying it on each other," Fred stated matter-of-factly.

He held his wand up high and spoke clearly, "_Accio love-in-idleness_!"

The air was perfectly still for a moment, then they could make out a small vile containing their newest love potion zooming over the top of the sparkling magical canopy and right into Fred's outstretched hand. The deep purple liquid splashed merrily in the glass at the sudden stop.

"Just one drop in each of her eyes, and she'll fall madly in love with the first living being she sees." Fred's smile was almost too big for his face as he held the vile aloft like it was the holy grail. George chuckled manically beside him.

"What should it be," he managed between giggles, "a snake? A garden knome? Aunt Murial?"

The twins looked around the garden. The party had officially ended now. The band was no longer playing, and the magical glow from the great canopy had been extinguished, so that the only remaining light came from the moon, stars, and fireflies that danced over the flowered shrubs. Guests were making their way to their designated sleeping tents that had just been magically erected several yards away.

Peering through this exodus, Fred spotted a gaggle of slender, feminine frames and platinum blonde hair. He immediately alerted George's attention to this sight, realizing that it was, in fact, Fleur being escorted to a tent by her cousins.

"Seems the misses can't hold her champagne," George whispered in his brother's ear.

"Where is Bill? Shouldn't she be going to their tent? Good Lord, it's the man's _wedding _night…. They must have had a bigger row than I thought."

"Don't complain. This makes things much easier for us. Come on."

They snuck over to the edge of the tent as quietly as they could, and, pressing their ears against the canvass, they heard a strange but beautiful harmony of voices.

"Are they… _singing_ to her?" Fred whispered, looking totally bemused.

"Yeah, I think they are…" George listened more closely. "I can't understand what they're saying though. It's French."

They listened intently until the end of the song. It was strangely captivating. After it was over, the twins snapped out of their reverie and peered through the flaps of the tent to find Fleur alone in a fully furnished bedroom, much larger than what could be contained in a muggle tent, sleeping on an elaborate king-sized bed. A flap of canvas separated this room from the adjoining room, in which her cousins could be heard jabbering away in rapid French.

George leaned in close and whispered in Fred's ear, "You apply the potion. I'll go find a suitable candidate for her affection," and then he was off into the night, grinning like a madman.

"Fine," Fred hissed after him before creeping stealthily into the tent.

When he came to the edge of the bed, he uncorked the tiny vial, still in his hand, releasing an intoxicating aroma of violets and cherry pie. He tilted it carefully over Fleur's beautiful face, so that one drop fell onto each of her sealed eyelid. The potion simpered and evaporated in a haze, leaving the scent hanging heavy in the air as Fleur sighed and rolled over.

Fred noiselessly backed away from the bed and out of the tent just as the still night air was pierced by the most dreadfully awful singing he had ever heard.

"_The ousel cock so black of hue,  
>With orange-tawny bill,<br>The throstle with his note so true,  
>The wren with little quill,-<em>

Fred's fingers flew into his ears as he attempted to block out the horrible screeching that no-one in their right mind would call a song. His face was screwed up in disgust, but through his squinty eyes, he could see George jogging up to sit beside him. He too had his fingers in his ears (well, one ear and one hole), but his face was spread in a huge smile, and he looked like he was holding back suck forceful laughter, Fred worried his head might explode. Before he had time to relate any questions however, a flowery, heavily accented voice joined in the squaling,

"Oh what beautiful muzic! Eet iz like an angel!"

The tall, radiant figure of Fleur suddenly emerged from the tent, staring off in the direction of the horrible clamor with a look of deepest longing. Fred followed her gaze, and when his eyes met the object of her affection, he could not help but fall into fits of hushed giggles right along with his brother.

A being with the body of a small wizard wearing flowing, navy dress robes and the head of a donkey was swaying drunkenly on the path leading to the tents and singing his atrocious song at full volume.

"_The finch, the sparrow and the lark,  
>The plain-song cuckoo gray,<br>Whose note full many a man doth mark,  
>And dares not answer nay;-<br>for, indeed, who would set his wit to so foolish  
>a bird? who would give a bird the lie, though he cry<br>'cuckoo' never so?"_

Fred tore his attention away from this bizarre scene and whispered to his brother, "George, who _is_ that?"

George was about to answer when at that moment, Fleur rushed to the monster and threw her arms around its neck, placing loving kisses all over its fury head and ears.

"What a lovely creature. You must zing again! My ears 'ave never 'eared such pleasing notes before. And my eyes are zimply _enthralled_ when I look at you."

The creature looked utterly bemused at this treatment and did not say another word.

George finally managed to compose himself enough to divulge the beast's identity to Fred.

"I-it's Dedalus D-Diggle," he choked out, still clutching his ribs and shaking in silent laughter, "I-I met him still o-on the dance f-floor… he was pissed drunk and s-singing… I transfigured h-his head…didn't notice a thing!"

It was too perfect. Fleur was now ushering a blubbering Dedalus into her tent, and at the threshold stood her four gorgeous cousins, their faces etched in concern and revulsion. They took in the image of Fleur doting on this half-beast and immediately tried to wrench her away, back into bed. During their passionate struggle, rented with heated French exchanged back and forth, Fred and George slipped away to let things pan out for the time being.

They stopped at the edge of the garden, which had been magically enhanced with such a variety of trees, streams, and flowering shrubs in decoration for the wedding, that it was more like a forest now. As they laughed and congratulated themselves on a perfectly executed prank, another sound met their ears. It sounded distressed… angry. It was two voices arguing, and as they came closer, it became apparent it was Ron and Hermione. The twins locked eyes, and a look of understanding passed between them as they each held up their wands simultaneously and casted concealing charms on each other, just as Ron and Hermione rounded a corner and came into view.

"Ron, for the last time, please stop following me! I told you I need to find Harry."

"Hermione, no, please, you can't see him," said Ron looking exasperated and out of breath. "He's with Ginny. They went in there about twenty minutes ago," he gestured to the forest behind Hermione, "they're probably fucking."

Hermione winced at Ron's course and blunt language.

"I need Harry," she repeated. "I need to find him and tell him before it's too late."

"Tell him what?" beseeched Ron desperately.

"That I love him."

Ron looked like someone had slapped him across the face.

"No… you can't! Hermione I-I think _I _love _you_!"

Hermione closed her eyes and bit her lip for a second before opening them and focusing on Ron.

"Ron it's… it's not going to work between us," she said finally, dropping her gaze. Ron wore a pained expression on his face as his lips uttered some inaudible response.

"I'm sorry. I have to go," Hermione spoke firmly, turning on her heel and running into the forest, soon disappearing past the light of the fireflies. Ron just stood there for a minute, taking deep breaths and looking like he didn't know what to do. At last, he seemed to make up his mind about something as a determined expression settled onto his features and he plunged into the woods after Hermione.

A few seconds of stillness passed, and Fred and George lifted their enchantments off each other. They each wore identical evil grins.

"Well George, it seems there's still a bit of mischief to be done tonight."

"Right you are dear Fred, let's go have some fun."

**In case any of you didn't read the title, the song comes from Shakspeare's **_**A Midsummer Night's Dream.**_


	2. Chapter 2

"Harry, slow down!" Ginny laughed as Harry plunged deep into the forest of flowering shrubs, dragging her by the hand in his wake.

They reached a small open spot by a little stream where the trees and tall brush parted enough to allow a couple rays of moonlight to penetrate through and reflect off of the sparkling water. Ginny lurched forward and pounced at Harry, all but tackling him onto the mossy creek bed.

"Here," she whispered into his ear, then laid down on the moss, staring seductively up at him.

Harry's breath hitched in his throat. He was momentarily stunned by how remarkably beautiful she looked just then. The moonlight illuminated her white, freckled face and her clear blue eyes as they bore into his emerald ones. Her vibrant red hair fanned out over the moss bed, glowing like fire, and her elaborate, golden dress robes fell over her body in elegant folds. One of the straps had already slipped down her shoulder, exposing ample cleavage. Their surroundings only added to the beauty of the scene. Large flowers of every shape and color were in full bloom all around them, and everywhere he looked, Harry could see fireflies dancing… at least, he thought they were fireflies, but on closer inspection, he saw they were actually tiny, glowing pixies. The magic around them was so thick, he could feel it welling inside of him, and it intensified his already overwhelming desire.

Harry knelt down and bent low over his girlfriend. Her red-cherry lips were ready and waiting, and Harry touched them to his in a gentle, lingering kiss. Ginny responded eagerly under him, tangling her hands in his messy black hair and pulling his body flush with hers. Their lips were moving in rhythm together, and when Harry advanced his tongue, Ginny allowed him entrance. She moaned as he explored the length of her tongue, the roof of her mouth, and the straight row of her teeth. She bit his lip as he began to pull away, as though begging him not to leave. Harry's hands roamed over the folds of her dress, reveling in the feel of her narrow waist and supple breasts. Ginny arched under him in ecstasy, one of her hands roughly fumbling with the collar of his dress robes, trying to loosen his tie, while the other strayed down to his uncomfortably tight pants to stroke his straining erection. Harry shifted his attention to her exposed neck, kissing and biting the glowing white skin, tracing a path all the way down to her almost exposed bosom. He gripped his hand around the silky fabric clinging to her heaving chest, but just as he was about to remove it, everything went pitch-black.

Harry gave a start at his sudden loss of vision and rolled off of Ginny in surprise.

"What the—," he gasped, sliding over the bank before hearing a splash and feeling cold water soak through his robes as he tumbled into the creek.

Nearby, he could hear Ginny screaming, "Harry! Harry? Where are you?"

"Ginny! I'm right here in the creek, hold out your hand!"

"I can't see, Harry!"

Harry was about to shout back a response when suddenly he was overtaken by a feeling of immense exhaustion. He threw out a heavy arm which flopped uselessly onto the bank and uttered once more, "G-Gin-." He then felt his head drop into nothingness and knew no more.

"Very neat. That _somnus maxima_ spell was quite effective, Fred."

"Why thank you, George. Excellent timing with the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder. About a second longer, and I think I would be needing some serious therapy right now," the twins congratulated each other as they removed their concealing charms and stepped through the low-laying shrubs to stand over their sleeping victims.

"I think I still might need some," said George, shaking his head sadly. "To think what she was about to do…" he tisked disapprovingly. "It's a good thing we intervened and preserved her innocence."

Fred laughed at this.

"Honestly, I think we're saving Harry's innocence more than our sister's," he stated, jokingly elbowing his brother in the ribs.

"What, you really think she's done it before then?"

"It wouldn't surprise me. She's already dated Dean and Smith, and there's no telling how many others we don't know about…. She's just too popular for her own good."

"Ughh, you're right," George muttered, giving his wand a flick and causing Ginny's dress robes to hitch themselves up and cover more of her breast. "We really should put a stop to young Ginny's immoral behavior."

"I couldn't agree more Georgey. We must remove this vile temptation from her at once."

"At least until he gains enough experience to keep up with her," George snickered.

"Oh, George, that's disgusting!" Fred shuddered.

"You just said yourself how experienced you think she is."

"True…," Fred conceded. "It's best for Harry too, you know. He'll be saved a night of embarrassment and have a chance to hone his skills on someone just as clueless as himself in the sexual department."

"So are we carrying on with the plan then?" George asked.

"But of course!" Fred produced the vial of _love-in-idleness_ and crouched in the moss beside Harry, still lying in the creek. He carefully placed one drop onto each of his eyelids then straightened up, corking the purple liquid and stowing safely into his robes.

"Love juice in place." He turned to George with a smile, "will you do the honors?"

"_Locomotor Harry!_" George spoke clearly, pointing his wand at Harry's snoozing form. He was magically lifted from the stream and floated just in front of Fred and George as they directed him in a path through the underbrush away from the little clearing.

"Do you remember where we left the other two?"

"They're sleeping just over that little hill on the other side of the garden."

"I sense that there is going to be some deflowering in this garden tonight."

Hermione opened her eyes to blurry images of stars swimming in the inky sky beyond the leaves and flowers that hung over her face. She sat up, her head spinning as she did so and her elegantly curled hair, now flecked with flower petals and pieces of grass, falling over her face. As she pushed it aside without ceremony, trying to get her vision to focus, she racked her brain to remember how she came to be lying here on this patch of grass in the Weasley's enchanted garden. She remembered running in to find Harry. He had gone in with Ginny some time ago, and she had to find him before they did anything. Somehow Hermione knew that if they went all the way, they would become inseparable. She had to let Harry know how she really felt about him before it was too late. She remembered Ron chasing after her, begging her to stop because he had feelings for her, and he wanted her to be with him. But she just didn't feel the same way he did. They began arguing, and everything just went black after that. There was nothing, and now here she was suddenly waking up in a completely different part of the garden. It didn't make any sense. She had no idea what time it was, but surely she had missed her chance to confront Harry and Ginny before they… she didn't even want to think about it.

_It was a stupid idea anyway_, she told herself. She really didn't know what she expected to do even if she found them. Did she really think that Harry would just leave his girlfriend then and there just because Hermione expressed some secret, undying love for him? They would probably laugh right in her face. Ron was right; she was being mental.

Her feelings of depression were slowly being replaced by fear as she stood up and brushed off her dress robes. Looking all around her, she didn't recognize anything, but she started as something unexpected caught her eye. Someone was lying beside the murmuring stream that ran through the garden, beneath a rosebush at the base of a small waterfall. It was Harry!

She rushed to his side and found that his handsome dress robes were rumpled and completely soaked through, and his scarlet tie was loose and hung limply around his neck.

"Oh, Harry! _Harry_! Oh, please wake up Harry!" She jostled him and leaned her ear down low over his peaceful face, checking for breathing. Suddenly, his eyes fluttered open, and when they focused on her, they lit up brighter than the stars.

"Hermione," Harry whispered her name heavily laced with affection.

"Harry! Oh, thank God you're alright. Do you know how we got here? I was talking with Ron one minute and the next—

"Hermione… you are exquisite!"

"Wha-what?"

"I've never seen any girl more perfect, like a goddess!"

"Harry… Harry please don't be mean…. I know that you're with Ginny and you don't feel the same way about me that I do about you, so let's please just forget that tonight ever happened… I won't pester you anymore. Don't make fun of me," she said pitifully.

Harry reached up and gently brushed a strand of hair behind Hermione's ear. He then proceeded to lightly stroke her cheek muttering under his breath, "so beautiful…."

Hermione was thoroughly bemused now. She looked straight into Harry's glowing emerald eyes. _Merlin, he is gorgeous_, she thought. She could stare into those eyes forever. But something was definitely going on here. Why was he acting so strange?

"Harry… what… what are you doing?" she managed to get the words out, in no louder than a whisper.

"I've wasted so much time, Hermione; time that should have been spent with you." He was inching closer to her. Hermione's heart was racing. Her breath came in short gasps.

"B-… but what about… Ginny?" she asked breathlessly as Harry took her face into both of his long-fingered, calloused hands, holding her gaze with those dazzling green eyes.

"I regret every minute I ever spent with her," he muttered, a distasteful look crossing his face for a second. "I see the light now, and I only want to be with you."

Could he still be joking? If he was, he was taking this too far. Could he possibly be telling the truth? Should she dare to hope…?

All her doubts, speculations, and fears were wiped from her mind as he bore his lips down onto hers in a crushing kiss. She resisted briefly, but his lips felt so warm and inviting, and every molecule in her body was screaming in delight. She melted into Harry and returned the kiss with just as much enthusiasm as he brought. She forgot everything else: Ginny, Ron, the peculiar events of that night; the only things that existed were she and Harry. She buried her hands into his hair and moaned as he bit down on her lower lip. Pulling his head back, she rolled their bodies together so that she was on top, straddling him. She attacked him with full force. Magic seemed to crackle between their lips as they moved with each other, tongues wrestling for dominance over who would gain entrance to the other's mouth. Eventually, Harry's won out, and it roved over everything it could reach: tongue, gums, teeth, it even came close to the back of Hermione's throat. It was the most passionate kiss she had ever experienced.

Hermione's hands found Harry's soggy tie and nimbly removed it, casting it aside into a flower bed. Next, she made short work of the buttons holding his soaked robes to his torso, and within seconds, Harry lay shirtless under her, his well-defined musculature clearly visible under the pale skin glowing in the moonlight. She dragged her hands over the smooth planes of muscle from his chest all the way down to the coarse, black hairs which began at his navel and disappeared beneath his pants.

Harry's strong hands were gripping Hermione at the waist, and they began to travel up, exploring the intricate stitching of the elegant white dress as they hugged the curves of Hermione's body. Their lips met again in another passionate kiss as Harry pulled the dress from Hermione's shoulders down to her waist, exposing her ample, white breasts. She straightened up and arched her back over him, allowing him to take in the sight of her naked torso.

Slowly and seductively, she lowered her mouth down to Harry's toned abdomen, placing a trail of wet kisses all the way down to the waistband of his trousers. She wrapped one hand around the massive erection swelling underneath the fabric as the other fumbled with the belt buckle, finally releasing it. Harry helped her release the fastenings of his pants, and, pulling them down to his knees along with his briefs in one fluid motion, Hermione finally freed Harry's thick, gorgeous cock.

She took the length of his shaft into both of her hands and began slowly stroking up and down, eliciting several moans of pleasure from The Chosen One underneath her, now puddy in her hands. Harry took fistfuls of grass in each hand and visibly bit his lip to keep from crying out in ecstasy as Hermione lightly caressed his sack and grazed a trail with her tongue from the base of his shaft all the way up to the head, swirling around his hyper-sensitive glans before taking his whole length into her mouth.

She nearly gagged as his cock came close to hitting the back of her throat, but managed to compose herself and come back up for air, tears welling in her eyes. He was even bigger than she had imagined. She looked into Harry's eyes. They were wide and bright; pleading, begging for more. She took a few steadying breaths and once again lowered her mouth onto Harry's throbbing erection. This time, she only took in about half the length of his shaft, bobbing her head up and down and sucking while using her hands to pump the base.

It was hard to tell how much time had elapsed while Hermione continued her administrations with Harry writhing under her, stifling moans and expletives by biting his lip. It could have been five minutes or half an hour; she didn't know. And she really didn't care. She could keep this up forever as far as she was concerned. Indeed, it surprised her how much pleasure _she_ was actually getting out of this. Her initial goal had been to stimulate Harry, but with each pump and slurp, she was getting more and more aroused.

Her movements were taking her further and further down Harry's cock, and she exerted all the willpower she could muster to push past her gag reflex and envelope his whole length. Just then a jolt of pleasure shot through her body as Harry's hand slipped under the hem of her dress and found her clitoris from the outside of her soaked panties. Hermione all but forgot her task at hand, letting herself be overtaken with ecstasy as Harry's long, nimble fingers continued to stroke and tickle.

Suddenly, his index finger hooked around the thin, elastic fabric and inserted itself into her opening. A high-pitched moan escaped Hermiones lips and her heart rate fluttered wildly. Her breathing came in short gasps and she clenched around the digit as it bent and contorted inside her, pulsing back and forth.

Hermione's head was spinning; every muscle in her body was quivering. She had never imagined that anything could feel this good. No-one had ever touched her like this before. And just as she was becoming accustomed to this new and wonderful sensation, Harry worked a second finger into her tight entrance.

Her head snapped up, once again meeting his emerald eyes with hers. Her hand reflexively shot out and grabbed Harry around the back of the neck, pulling him closer and crushing her lips against his, overcome with animalistic desire. Harry's fingers swiveled and hooked just a certain way, and Hermione was in euphoria. It was as though a bubble had burst deep in her belly, propelling a wave of pleasure through her every nerve. Her whole body stiffened, and her mouth opened in a silent, shuddering scream. The tension had become unbearable. She had to have him. Right then.

"I need you," she whispered.

"Yes…" Harry hissed back.

"Inside."

"Yes."

Hermione shifted off of Harry to lay on the soft, flowery bed, staring up at the stars. Harry shrugged out of his open dress robe still clinging to his shoulders, yanked off his shoes, and removed his trousers. He then proceeded to help Hermione release the fastenings securing her dress to her waist and remove the garment, slipping it down her legs. Finally, he took her thin panties gingerly in both hands and slowly pulled them off, leaving them both completely naked.

Harry slid his body on top of hers. The tingling sensation of their smooth skin rubbing against each other was amazing. It made Hermione shudder and draw a quivering breath.

"Wait," she said abruptly. She reached into her discarded dress and pulled out her wand with trembling fingers, casting a quick non-verbal protective charm over both of them.

"Where did you learn how to do that?" Harry asked, perplexed.

Hermione gave a nervous chuckle. "I came across the spell while reading the Seventh Year Charms textbook. I suspect sexual education is part of the N.E.W.T. curriculum."

Harry smiled and looked steadily into her eyes, wordlessly inquiring if she was ready. Hermione took a deep breath and clenched her teeth in preparation for the pain that she knew was about to come. Harry pushed against her opening and then slowly advanced inside. It was tight… too tight, but he kept going. He kept advancing slowly and steadily until the entire length of his shaft had breeched the opening. Hermione dug her nails into Harry's long, muscular back to keep from crying out, betraying only a soft whimper instead. It was painful, but it also felt good in a weird way. The pain somehow intensified her pleasure. Harry began to pull out, moving just as slowly as his entrance. The pain was already receding, being replaced by a desire for stronger and faster thrusts. Once Harry was most of the way out, he complied with Hermione's unspoken request almost immediately, plunging back in and then receding, again and again. His tempo increased with every thrust, and each time his hips bucked against Hermione's, she could feel his magic crackling inside her, radiating from every pore, pushing her steadily closer to climax.

She was moaning and gasping freely now, no longer trying to restrain herself. She wanted to give Harry everything she had. His thrusts were becoming rougher, and Hermione was meeting every one of them with a wild passion. With a feral growl, Harry clamped his mouth onto Hermione's slender neck and raked his teeth across the white skin, eliciting a yelp. It hurt, but it also incited even further arousal, and Hermione attacked him with full force. She kissed him fiercely with a frenzied passion. They were clawing and biting at each other like wolves fighting for superiority, never breaking their thrusting rhythm. Hermione threw herself at Harry again, this time knocking him off balance and sending them both tumbling a couple feet until they landed in the stream with a loud splash.

Harry was still inside of her, still impossibly hard. Both of their chests were heaving from exertion and the shock of the chilly water. Harry grabbed her, one arm in each of his strong hands, and with impressive strength, he picked her up and pinned her against the smooth rock of the waterfall. He resumed his rhythm, pumping faster and faster. It seemed that he had better leverage in this new position and could actually penetrate deeper. Hermione was close. He was rubbing right up against her most sensitive area, and the steady pounding of the cold water provided extra stimulation.

Harry gave several powerful thrusts and was coming. His speed doubled as he plunged even harder into Hermione. She felt like she was being forced straight through the rock as his orgasm sent her over the edge too, and they were coming together, drowning out the drumming of the waterfall with their cries of rapture. Harry's orgasm seemed to last forever. He spilled everything he had into Hermione until finally, they were both spent.

Hermione collapsed against Harry's hard body, nearly toppling him over. He woozily walked them both to the soft, mossy bank where they collapsed into each others' arms. Neither of them said a word as they laid there panting in the still night air, basking in the post-orgasm bliss. Hermione could swear that their wet bodies were steaming.


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry I haven't updated this story in a while. It's been kinda crazy with schoolwork here lately, and I've also been working on my own novel. I like this little fic though, so I really want to see it through to the end. I'll try to post the next chapter much sooner! Please rate and review **

Harry and Hermione both lay there for a while, not saying anything. There was no need for words. Their bodies were flush together, basking in the post-orgasmic bliss. Harry looked at the girl beside him, nestled in his arms. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing was slow and even. He wondered whether she had fallen asleep. He couldn't help but marvel at how astoundingly beautiful she was at that moment, her full, ruby-colored lips contrasting perfectly with her creamy, white skin framed in their flower bed. Her long, auburn hair looked golden in the moonlight with water droplets clinging to each strand and glistening like diamonds. She looked like some sort of sleeping forest nymph.

Bringing his face close to hers, Harry placed a tender kiss on her waiting lips, savoring her sweet taste. He could kiss Hermione forever as far as he was concerned. She moaned gently and snaked her fingers through his thick, black hair, pressing her lips tighter against his, and Harry responded eagerly, his mouth moving in concert with hers. With his strong, seeker hands, he pulled her naked body against his, skin flushed against silky skin. His throbbing erection was already returning. It was slightly painful so soon after he had come, but his overwhelming lust pushed him to continue. He needed more release.

"Harry," Hermione interjected breathlessly between kisses, "Harry, what… are you going to do… about… Ginny?"

"Ginny…?" Harry was barely aware of what he was saying. The sweet melody of Hermione's voice still rang in his ears, but the words had barely registered with him. All that he could think about was her: how good it felt to hold her, to pile kiss on top of kiss over her red, swollen lips. Her intoxicating aroma filled his nostrils and clouded his brain. She had truly captivated all his senses.

"Yes, Ginny," Hermione repeated forcibly, pushing herself out of reach of Harry's greedy lips and fixing him with a serious look. Harry stared, captivated at the way her amber eyes smoldered. "You've got to tell her _something_. You do intend to break up with her don't you?"

"Of course!" Harry assured her. "I wish she were here now, so I could tell her. I'm in love with you, Hermione. I don't want to be with anyone else."

"But Harry, why all of a sudden? Just a couple hours ago you were happily dating Ginny weren't you? And you ran in here to be with _her_…. What happened?"

"Look, I don't want to talk about Ginny. It was a mistake being with her, and I wish I could take back all that wasted time. But Hermione, when I saw you here in the garden tonight… I don't know; it was like some kind of spell had taken a hold of me…"

Hermione's eyes widened as she studied Harry inquisitively, and his senses were once again muddled by her astonishing beauty, causing him to babble like a love-drunk idiot. "My ear is much enamored by your note… and my eye is enthralled to your shape."

"Harry, what's wrong with you?" Hermione demanded. She scooted further away. "You're acting like you really _are_ under a spell…." Then she froze, and her eyes became very wide, as if struck with a sudden epiphany. "Harry, what's the last thing you remember before me waking you up?"

"I—Wha-… I don't know…. There was nothing before that. I feel like I was reborn at that moment."

"Harry, _think_. It's important," Hermione insisted. It really was rather irritating the way she kept berating him with these pointless questions when all he wanted was to keep kissing her. "Did anything funny happen? Could someone maybe have slipped something in your drink at the reception?" She was starting to sound impatient. What was bothering her? Maybe if he gave her a good enough answer, she would finally drop the subject and they could move on to more pleasant activities, Harry reasoned. He racked his brain, trying to remember what had happened with Ginny.

"I was with her… and we were… fooling around," Hermione blushed and brought her hand up to scratch her nose in an attempt to hide it. "But we didn't do anything," Harry added quickly, seeing her reaction. "And then, I don't know… everything just went black. Next thing I knew, I was here… with you." The desire for physical contact with Hermione had become unbearable, and he reached out a hand and began to stroke her cheek, relishing the feel of her velvety smooth skin.

"That's what happened to me too…" Hermione mused, her face relaxing and leaning into Harry's caress in spite of herself. "I was looking for you two… and Ron was chasing after me. I turned around and started yelling at him to leave me alone, and then… everything went dark." She locked his gaze with her dark, golden eyes brimming with anxiety and revelation.

"Harry, someone has bewitched—

The rest of her sentence was cut short as the snapping and crunching sound of a person lumbering through the garden drifted to where they were nestled from somewhere off in the distance. Hermione gasped and hastily covered herself with her dress, peering through the thickets and flowers to catch a glimpse of their intruder. A familiar voice called out in the still, night air, "Hermione! Hermione, where are you? I need to talk to you!"

"It's Ron," Hermione uttered breathlessly. She quickly slipped back into her wrinkled and grass-stained dress.

"Ron? What does he want?"

"I told you, Harry. I was with him before I woke up with you. He says he's in love with me. He wants me to be with him instead of you…."

"What!" Harry leapt to his feet, enraged. "That traitor! Trying to win the affection of the girl _I_ love? He's supposed to be my best friend!"

"Harry, please don't do anything! You're not in your right mind and we need to figure out what's happened. Ron doesn't know anything about us. He thinks that you're in love with Ginny."

"Let me take care of him, Hermione," Harry asserted, extracting his wand from his crumpled dress robes still littering the ground. His voice was low and dangerous.

"Harry, no! Please!" she wailed, desperately tugging on his arm to get him to lie back down, but Harry was unfazed.

"I will sing so that he can hear and know that I'm not afraid." A wicked grin spread across Harry's face as he bellowed through the garden toward the sound of Ron's galumphing footsteps,

"_Weasley cannot save a thing!_

_He cannot block a single ring!_

_That's why Slytherins all sing:_

_Weasley is our king!_"

"Harry, stop!" Hermione begged. She looked like she might start crying.

But Harry could also hear Ron's shocked voice ringing through the trees, "What the _hell_? Who the fuck's singing that?"

His clear indignation spurred Harry on. He was hungry for a fight. He had to eliminate any opposition to his and Hermione's union.

"_Weasley was born in a bin!_

_He always lets the Quaffel in!_

_That's why Slytherins all sing:_

_WEASLEY IS OUR KING!_"

The rustle of leaves and branches grew louder, and Ron's freckled face burst through the shrubs before he stomped into the babbling creek with a loud splash. It looked as though he had just traversed a thick jungle. Twigs and leaves clung to strands of his tangled hair and to his tattered dress robes, and his face was scratched in several places and flecked with dirt. He stood frozen in place for a moment, apparently stunned by the unexpected scene he had just stumbled upon. His eyebrows disappeared into his ginger locks and the color on his face changed dramatically, shifting to ghostly pale and then to crimson as he took in the disarray of both of their appearances and Harry's state of undress.

"Blimey! What the fuck is this?" he blurted out finally. His face twisted in outrage and disgust. "Were you just with _her_?"

"Ron, go away, please! Harry's not himself!" Hermione pleaded hysterically, but neither boy budged an inch.

"Like hell I'm not," Harry interjected, pulling himself free of Hermione's grip.

"I can't believe you would do this to me, mate!" Ron was seething. "You knew how I felt about her. And now what, you're just gonna throw my sister to the wayside like a piece of trash? Fuck you, Harry!"

Harry was about to retort when the sound of more rustling caused them all to fall silent. The next second a shock of flaming red hair broke into the clearing, and Ginny's face progressed through the exact transformations that her brother's had earlier (except her eyes lingered significantly longer on certain parts of Harry's anatomy).

"Harry! What's going on?" she exclaimed, looking from one face to the next in utter bewilderment. She zoned in her gaze on Hermione, still sitting on the ground and clutching her shoulders in a self-hug, staring fixedly away from Ginny's questioning eyes.

"Hermione…" Ginny began. "Tell me what happened." Her voice was growing more hostile with every word.

"I—I don't what to say Ginny," Hermione answered weakly. "It's really complicated."

"YOU SLEPT WITH HIM, DIDN'T YOU?"

"Ginny, please let me explain," Hermione squeaked, scrambling shakily to her feet.

"You whore!" Ginny pulled her wand forcibly from the folds of her dress and charged at Hermione shrieking the incantation for the Bat Bogey Hex.

"_Protego!_"

A semi-transparent shield erupted between Ginny and Hermione, throwing Ginny back off her feet. Confused and shaken, she looked up at Harry, who was still clutching his wand in his outstretched hand, pointed directly at her.

"If you do anything to her, I swear I'll curse you, Ginny," Harry spat. His emerald eyes were full of loathing.

"Alright Harry, you've crossed the line mate." Ron closed the gap between them in about a second and pointed his own wand at Harry's neck. "I don't care who you are; no one threatens my little sister."

Harry looked down at the tip of Ron's wand, mere inches away from his nose, and his features softened in amusement. "Are you challenging me to a duel, Ron?" He chuckled slightly under his breath. "Alright then, let's go. You lead the way." His wand arm dropped to his side, and he casually gestured for Ron to lead them out of the little clearing.

Without another word, Ron turned on his heel and stalked off into the thicket with Harry following close behind. Once they were out of sight, Ginny rounded on Hermione. "What did you do to him?" she hissed. "You must have cast some sort of charm or something on him to make him prefer you over me… you giant, frumpy freak!"

"Stay back, Ginny! You wouldn't want to go against Harry's wishes would you?" Hermione quipped, reaching her hand in her dress to grasp her own wand.

"I don't give a _damn_ what Harry said! I'll claw your eyes out!"

"That is if you can catch me. My legs are longer than yours to run away!" Hermione shouted over her shoulder as she leapt over a narrow portion of the stream and sprinted off into the brush.

Ginny immediately tore after her, howling with rage like a flaming gremlin and leaving the clearing desolate and peaceful once again. All was silent, except for the distant sounds of echoing laughter.


	4. Chapter 4

"Well that was pleasantly eventful, wouldn't you say Fred?"

"On the contrary, I think I may be scarred for life. I had rather hoped that we had delayed long enough tracking this lot down again for Harry to re-don his trousers."

The flowery brush just beyond the creek rustled and the Weasley twins seemed to materialize out of thin air as each lifted the concealment charm off of the other. Fred looked slightly repulsed as he desperately tried to shake away the image burned into his retinas.

"Oh come off it. I heard you chuckling over there too." George gave his brother a playful shove, making his grimace break into a wide grin.

"I have to admit," Fred relented, clapping a hand on George's shoulder, "the look on Ron's face was priceless."

The twins' careless laughter filled the clearing so that no other noise could be heard, not even the pop from the bushes that they had just sauntered out of.

"Having fun boys?"

In a single instant, both twins spun their heads around to face their older brother with identical expressions halfway between shock and mirth painted on their faces, and Bill seized them both by the scruffs of their necks as if they were misbehaving five-year olds.

"What the _hell_ were you two thinking?" he hissed at the pair of them.

"W-we were just after a laugh."

"There was no harm d-"

"Fleur! What the hell did you do to _Fleur_?"

"Oh that…" George sputtered. "Well we thought we might best lend our services by distracting her from the issue at hand."

"And you must admit her attention has definitely been diverted elsewhere," Fred supplemented.

"Oh, I am well aware of where my bride's attention is focused at the moment, my brothers," Bill replied in a dangerous voice, making every word drip with venom. "Can you imagine how it feels to wait for your newly-wed wife to come to your bed chambers only to find out that she's been bewitched into chasing around some codger, so old he has to cast masticating charms on his food before he eats?"

"Oh… right… well-"

"Wait… you mean she _wasn't _stiffing you of your marital ri-,"Fred was cut short by a scathing look from Bill, his face flushed crimson with anger.

"If you two don't find a way to set her back to normal, I swear I'll-"

"Bill, Bill, relax," George chimed in. "Do you honestly believe we would do something like this without thinking it through?" The blank look that crossed Bill's face in response to this question told the twins that was exactly what he believed.

"I don't think our track record will back you up there, brother," Fred whispered in George's ear. "Not to worry though," he directed at Bill. "We've actually covered all our goal posts this time and prepared a special antidote that will set everything right as rain." Fred reached into his robes and extracted a small vile of white liquid. "Gentle Lover's Remedy," he stated proudly as Bill took the bottle and examined its contents closely.

"What is this?" Bill eyed the twins suspiciously.

"Just a drop in each of her doey eyes, and you will have your bonny lass back in no time," George said, his faced stretched once again into a wide smile that was immediately reflected on Fred's.

"And you're sure about this?"

"Definitely. This product has been tested and proven to work."

"We're about to put it into mass production and sell it at the shop."

"Now the only problem will be prying Fleur away from Diggle."

"Hmpf. You think I would have left her alone in that state?" Bill asked sardonically. "After I tracked her down, Mum and Dad hauled her straight up to the house and have been using all their power to restrain her." The twins' freckled faces suddenly turned white and their laughter quickly ebbed away.

"Oh no, you mean Mum knows about this?" Fred inquired anxiously.

"Of course she does! Were you two really so dense to think you could pull off a stunt like this and avoid her finding out?" Bill shook his head disbelievingly.

"Well that's it then. We're done for," said George with exaggerated resignation.

"That deranged woman will skin our hides and feed us to a flock of mad hippogriffs if she knows we mucked up one of her sons' wedding," concluded Fred.

"Look you two," Bill interjected, holding up the bottle and examining its contents once more. His face wore a rather odd expression. Was it sympathy? "If this stuff really works, we can put all this mess behind us, and I'll keep Mum off your backs. After all, my wedding night's not over yet, and I suppose you really were trying to help in your own twisted, demented way…" Fred and George's faces lit up once more with mirth at this proclamation.

"Oh fantastic!"

"Of course it'll work! It's a product of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!"

"We do stand by our merchandise. One hundred percent satisfaction guaranteed."

"Yeah, O.K. I get it," Bill cut them off. "Now come on, hurry, let's get back to The Burrow." He turned made to leave the clearing when a glimpse of the twins' shared uneasy glance to each other stopped him in his tracks. He slowly revolved on his heel to face them again, this time wearing a look of growing suspicion. "Say, what are you two doing out here anyway?"

"Oh… right," George began, scratching the back of his head and trying to find the words to most gently relay that their younger siblings were even deeper in the garden and may currently be dueling their friends into submission, which may or may not have anything to do with the new, now all too familiar, Weasleys' product.

Exactly what those words might have been, no one can say because the twins were spared an explanation at that moment when the sound of two loud,slightly staggered, rumbling explosions from different corners of the garden shook the very ground they were all standing on.

"Was that-?"

"—Ginny's reductor curse?"

"But what was the other one?" Fred and George locked eyes once more just long enough to register the look of panic reflected on each of their face before sprinting through the trees in different directions and shrubs toward the sources of the disturbance.

Bill remained fixed in the same spot for a moment, looking utterly bemused before calling out, "you boneheads better fix whatever shit storm you've made now!" And with another crack, he was gone.

Meanwhile, deeper in the garden, Harry continued his march, leading Ron to an area free of flowering shrubs where they would have plenty of room to duel. How dare Ron try to come between what he and Hermione shared? Best friend or not, Harry wouldn't stand for it. Hermione was his whole world now, and nothing else seemed to matter. If Ron could not give them his blessing, then he was an enemy as far as Harry's clouded judgment was concerned.

Reaching a wide, flat clearing, Harry quickly crossed to the other side and spun around to meet his adversary.

"Oh blimey couldn't you at least have had the decency to put your trousers back on?" Ron panted as he stumbled red-faced through the thicket to stand opposite Harry.

It took Harry a second to process what his best friend-turned enemy had said. Looking down and taking in his unclothed state, he felt his face grow hot as a slight blush tinged his cheeks. He had been so blinded by anger at Ron's intrusion, he hadn't given a second thought to his clothes. Cursing his stupidity, his face betrayed no signs of embarrassment other than his crimson cheeks, which were already flushed with anger. Harry met Ron's gaze with a cold, steely glare.

"Better you see me than her," he said darkly before pointing his wand at a nearby bush and muttering an unheard incantation. The bush morphed and twisted around itself until it resembled something like a pair of green trousers and a green vest, though there were still leaves and twigs sticking out in several places. Harry roughly threw the make-shift garments over himself, wincing slightly as the twigs scraped against his skin.

"What the _hell_ has gotten into you Harry?" Ron asked, staring at Harry in complete exasperation. "I thought you and Ginny were getting on great…."

"That was a mistake. Hermione has always been the one for me, Ron."

"What are you talking about? You've never shown her any interest, and I'm sure you knew how I felt about her! Tell me what's really going on!" The confusion on Ron's face was quickly being replaced by anger.

"She doesn't want you, she wants me!" Harry shot back, gesturing wildly with his wand and releasing a shower of sparks. "And deep down I've always loved her. I don't know why it's taken me until tonight to realize it… but now that I have, nothing will ever stop me from being with her. Not even you! _Expelliarmus!_" A jet of red light shot from the end of Harry's wand and rocketed straight toward Ron's face who ducked and rolled out of the way at the last second.

"_Flippendo!_" he shouted back, sending a ball of dazzling white light streaking across the clearing. Harry was so surprised by Ron's sudden retaliation, that he didn't have time to cast a shield, but luckily for him Ron's aim was off, so his jinx flew just over its target's head to explode on a nearby tree. Harry could still feel the strong waves of power from that last curse even after it passed him, and despite his anger, he couldn't deny to himself how impressed he was at Ron's improvement in dueling spells over the last couple years.

_This fight may get interesting_, Harry thought to himself. In his momentary distraction, Ron sent another curse hurtling his way, this time on target. With Seeker reflexes Harry threw himself sideways to the ground and rolled out of range as the _Flippendo _spell narrowly missed him for the second time. He used his momentum to bring himself swiftly to his knees and took aim directly at Ron's chest. "_STUPEFY!_" he screamed, and a jet of brilliant crimson light erupted from the tip of his wand.

For a split second Ron seemed frozen in shock as the speeding curse promised to put him out, leaving him at Harry's mercy, but just before impact he whipped his wand in front of himself in a defensive gesture. "_PROTEGO!_" he screamed. A shimmering, transparent wall materialized in front of him and was immediately hit by Harry's curse. The shield charm must not have had time to gain its full strength, however, because instead of reflecting the blast, the wall absorbed it and glowed with a sinister, scarlet hue. A second later the shield shook violently and burst into a fine dust which dissolved into thin air. The force from the rupture threw Ron off balance and he staggered back a few steps before regaining his composure as Harry sent another _Stupefy_ curse his way. With no time to conjure any shield, Ron dropped to the ground to avoid the blast which illuminated a flowering shrub behind him.

Harry leered over him, like a lion about to pounce on its prey, slightly drained and panting from the effort of his spell casting. He focused his energies to ready one final knockout curse and pointed his wand down at his best friend. "_Stup-_"

"_LUMOS MAXIMA!_"

Before Harry could finish his spell, he was blinded by an explosive flash of light with the intensity of a sun beam. Shielding his eyes and cursing Ron, he stumbled and groped through the stars that now dotted his eyelids, trying to remain upright. He could hear Ron scurrying to his feet and knew that he was now a sitting duck for an attack from any direction. In desperation he readied his wand and tried something he had never attempted before.

"_PROTEGO!_"

As he cast the spell he spun around wildly on his heel until he was facing the same direction as he started, trying to make the shield wrap all the way around his body. Somehow, he managed not to fall over. He could hear Ron's spell being deflected off his shield to the right and squinted in that direction. His vision was still hazy, but he could just make out Ron's outline, standing only a few paces away from him. As the haze lifted and Ron's face came into focus, Harry could see that he stood there open-mouthed, apparently in awe of the amazing feat that Harry had just accomplished. Indeed, Harry had never even seen anyone else cast a strong shield charm that completely enveloped their body. He stood in a shimmering bubble rippling from the force of the spell that had just hit it. Harry smirked as Ron cast a _Stupefy_ curse that again bounced off of the magic shield like it was nothing. _It's time to end this_, Harry thought, planning to surprise Ron while he was stunned.

_Destination. Determination. Deliberation._

Harry spun on his heel once again and felt the familiar, sickening sensation of being squeezed through a tight tube. Just as swiftly as the uncomfortable feeling had arrived, it was gone, and Harry emerged crouched behind Ron who cried out in shock, looking anxiously around to find where his adversary had disappeared to, but not behind him.

_This is it_, thought Harry, and he flicked his wand and summoning all his powers of concentration thought, _Levicorpus_, in his head. Ron released a loud and animated string of obscenities as an invisible rope jerked him up by his ankles to leave dangling upside-down, squirming and writhing, in the middle of the clearing. His wand flew from his flailing hands and landed at the edge of the shrubs.

"_Accio,_" Harry said calmly, snatching the wand from the air as it flew to him and stepping out of the shadows. He slowly walked around the edge of the clearing to face his best friend (they could still be friends, he reasoned, as long as he promised not to get in between him and Hermione anymore; things didn't have to end ugly). Ron swung back and forth like a pendulum, unarmed and completely helpless, muttering curses under his breath and growing steadily redder in the face.

"I hate to admit it mate," Harry said catching Ron's inverted gaze, "but you put up one hell of a fight."

"Harry," Ron croaked, "Harry, I don't understand. I thought you liked Ginny. Please tell me what happened… And for the love of Merlin will you let me down?"

Without responding immediately Harry flicked his wand again and brought Ron softly to rest on the grassy ground, but he kept a tight grip on his wand.

"I told you, Ron, Ginny's not the one for me. I know that now. It's Hermione. She's everything to me, and I can't live without her. Can't you understand that?"

"Do you even hear what you're saying? This is Hermione, Harry! Just a few hours ago we were all best friends. What's changed to make you two suddenly soul mates? You're not yourself, mate. What's happened to you?"

Harry silenced Ron by holding his wand aloft, pointed at his chest. "Ron, you're my best friend… I don't want to hurt you, but if any of you are gonna try to stop us, then Hermione and I will just have to run away, and none of you will be able to find us."

"This is mental!" Ron screamed hysterically. "What about the horcruxes? What about You Know Who? Are you just gonna turn your back on us?"

"You think I could forget that?" Harry hissed angrily. "Hermione and I will find and destroy the horcruxes. I'm not trying to hide from my duty. I will beat him." Harry's gaze then became so intense that Ron was forced to look away, his cheeks once again reddening slightly, now at a loss for words.

"I'm sorry Ron. When this is all over, I hope we can be friends again."

Ron's head jerked back toward Harry in shock, and he recoiled as Harry began his curse. "_Stupe—stu—ss-_"

Clouds were rolling in, and everything was going dark. Harry's mind began to numb. Slowly he lost track of where he was and what he was doing as he succumbed to the blackness that enveloped him. The last thing he was aware of was a pair of scurrying footsteps making their way towards where he lay.

**Hey guys, sorry it's taken me so long to get this chapter out, but thank you so much to all who've been patient with me, and I still greatly appreciate all comments and reviews. Stay tuned for the last installment of this epic saga! Coming soon! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

Except for the occasional rustle of leaves or the snapping of a twig, Fred was completely silent as he wove his way nimbly through the flowery growth of the oversized garden like a shadow, trying to find the source of the explosion that he was sure had been made by his sister's reductor curse. So far the garden was still and peaceful. The luminescent fairies hovered lazily over their flowery shrubs and bright stars twinkled above as the warm midsummer night air caressed Fred's freckled cheeks and ruffled his ginger hair. Nothing of his surroundings hinted at any turmoil… yet.

Somehow, events seemed to have escalated beyond what he and George had planned… and he wished with all his might that Hermione had not been anywhere near that blast when it hit. If she had been, then things were about to get very messy indeed in this enchanted garden. _Enchanted garden_, Fred thought with a snort, _it's more like a jungle of chaos after everything that's happened tonight_. Normally, he and his twin reveled in creating chaos. In their school days, it had always been so refreshing to bring a little bit of disorder to meticulously structured schedules and the mundane tedium of class work. Now that they were both working stiffs, such fun was not as easy to come by. Perhaps they had overdone it a little this time, Fred pondered as he hopped over a fallen log. Lawless pranksters though they were, they never intended to cause any _lasting_ harm as part of their schemes (except for maybe Nott, but that Slytherin prat deserved it). No, it was time to end this night of debauchery before someone got hurt, or worse, before someone got hurt and their mother found out.

Fred began to hear voices and brought himself to a swift halt, crouched low to the ground, and listened intensely. With a sigh of relief, he realized that they were definitely girls' voices and there were two of them. One, he recognized as Ginny's was shrieking shrilly at the other, who could only be Hermione. Fred could just barely make out what they were saying.

"Quit running you skank whore! I want to see your face when I blow it to bits!"

"Ginny, stop! Please!" Hermione's voice cried back amidst a din of rustling foliage and stomping footsteps. So it was a chase, Fred perceived, and the voices were growing louder which meant they must be running toward him. He quickly extracted his wand from his robes and waved it over his body, casting a concealment charm practiced to perfection, so that he was all but invisible lying on the grass.

"Tell me what you did to him! I know you must have done something! What was it? A spell? A potion? Was it _you_ who ambushed us by the brook?"

"Ginny, I _swear_ I didn't! I know he's not himself, but I promise I don't know what happened to him!" Hermione sounded on the verge of tears as she wailed her defense. They were very close now. Fred lifted his head just enough to peer through the thicket and made out Hermione as she leaped across the bubbling stream, clearly out of breath but still maintaining a decent gap between her and Ginny, who came into view a moment later. Ginny looked completely deranged, thought Fred, and he marveled at how her rage mirrored their mother's perfectly. Her flaming red hair was dirty and disheveled, as was her dress which was also torn in several places, and even at this distance, her eyes glowed with blind fury.

_Perhaps we would have been doing Harry a favor…_ Fred mused. He softly pushed himself up into a kneeling position and reached into his robes for his stock of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder, thinking to put them out quickly with the same tactic he and George had used earlier, but his seeking fingers met with nothing but the fine silk of his dress robe pockets. "Dammit," he whispered to himself. The girls were closing in now, and Hermione stumbled and lost her footing leaving her sprawled across a soft bed of grass and delicate flowers. Ginny, recognizing the perfect opportunity to strike, sprinted forward with her wand raised high over her head, her eyes alight in triumph.

Fred had to think fast. Harkening back to his school days, he recalled a particular Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson from his sixth year. He and George had so revered Professor Moody (at least that's who they _thought_ they were revering), that they actually paid attention in his classes, suspending their usual disruptive antics for those two or three hour-long blocks of time per week, more than anyone would have guessed they would be capable of. _"In the face of an insurmountable force, illusion can sometimes be the best defense"_, he could hear his old professor growling in his mind. _"Confuse the enemy while you yourself remain vigilant."_ Fred only hoped he could correctly remember the incantation he had then proceeded to teach them. It was now or never. "_Obscurus nimbis_" he whispered before Ginny had a chance to even utter a syllable.

A dense jet of fog erupted from the tip of his wand, thick and billowing, and diffused through the shrubs at an alarming rate.

"What the hell?" Ginny gasped.

The next second, all three of them were enveloped in the ghastly mist. Due to the nature of the spell, Fred's vision was only slightly impeded. Hermione and Ginny, however, both groveled helplessly, effectively blinded, tripping over roots and bushes as they groped their way through the fog.

"What did you do now?" Ginny shouted angrily. "Are you too much of a coward to face me?"

Hermione didn't answer. She hadn't seen Fred and was doubtlessly just as befuddled as Ginny as to the source of her saving grace, but it seemed that she wasn't about to give away her position by shouting back. Fred had been counting on this. _Clever girl_, he thought with a smirk. She crawled quickly away from Ginny's voice.

With the silence and agility of a thief, Fred hopped to his feet and darted to Ginny's other side, ready to hatch the next phase of his brilliant plan. His stock of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder may have been depleted, but he had a few other assorted morsels from Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes stored in his other pockets. He rummaged through a few objects until he found what he was searching for and pulled out a small, round, innocent-looking candy decorated with the red and white swirls of a peppermint. He popped the treat into his mouth and sucked on it for a moment, taking the time to savor the cool, sweet taste. Once he was several paces away from Ginny, still shouting like a lunatic (honestly, it was a wonder she didn't wake the whole Burrow), he called out to her in his best imitation of Hermione, with a voice that was rendered falsely high-pitched by the enchanted sweet, "I'm over here you dumb bitch!"

Ginny spun around and shrieked with rage. "YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!" She set off at a run for a spot slightly to Fred's left and immediately tripped over a low-lying shrub, landing flat on her face with a muffled groan.

Fred giggled manically as he skipped off to another spot to continue his taunting. He was going to have some fun with this. "Up and down. Up and down. I will lead her up and down," he snickered to himself in a sing-song voice.

"Yoo hoo!" he made his voice sound like Hermione's again, "I thought you wanted to fight me. What're you doing lying on the ground, smelling the daisies?"

Ginny grappled furiously at the flowery bushes, following the sound of her provoker on her hands and knees. There was a downright dangerous look in her eyes, making Fred very glad that she couldn't see him right now. He set off at a trot deeper into the garden, widening the gap between them and Hermione. He didn't bother to muffle the sound of his footsteps this time so that Ginny could follow their noise too. "This way… come on now."

Several minutes passed like this, until Fred reached the edge of the fog cloud. Gradually, he let his voice die away until all was silent once more except for the continued sounds of Ginny struggling through the brush and cursing Hermione aloud. Reasoning that she would soon give up if the taunting ceased, Fred moved silently out of the mist and set off at jog to search for his brother.

He had not been looking long when suddenly a movement off to the side caught his eye. He stopped and peered through the thicket to investigate, and thought he saw what appeared to be a large dog sitting still as statue, staring at him, with black, shaggy hair.

"Fred!" A very familiar voice from behind startled him, and he jumped and spun around.

"George!" the pitch of Fred's voice had almost returned to normal, though it was still slightly high, and George's face split into an impish grin at the sound.

"Does mine ear sense the effects of a squeak mint?"

"I had to mislead our deranged sister somehow," Fred said with a shrug, exaggerating the fading squeaking of his voice. "I decided to get creative."

"My God, you do sound rather like Hermione," George chuckled. "What were you looking at?" he added with a puzzled expression, nodding over Fred's shoulder.

Fred turned back to the thicket where he had seen the dog, but it had vanished. Now there was nothing there but the flowering shrubs and their glowing fairy protectors. He wasn't even sure that he had seen what he thought he saw anymore. "Nothing," he said, turning back to face his twin. "Do you still have Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder?" he asked seriously.

"Yeah…" George replied, looking confused again. "Why do you need it? Have you not put Hermione and Ginny out yet?" He was starting to get anxious.

"I ran out… but don't worry, I took care of it," he added after seeing his twin's eyes widen in panic. "I used that old mist spell Moody taught us," he informed George with a grin.

"You mean Crouch."

"Well it might as well have been the real Moody," Fred countered. "I don't know where the hell Barty learned to act like that, but he damn sure missed his calling.

"But anyway, I couldn't lace that spell with a sleeping draught, so I'll still need the enhanced powder. Here, just hang on to my robes, and I'll lead you through the mist until we find them. Then we can put the girls to sleep. Have you taken care of Harry and Ron?"

"Yeah, they're both sleeping like trolls. I levitated them to the great old stump in the center of the garden."

"Excellent," replied Fred as George grabbed the hem of his robe and they made their way into the shrouded mist. "Soon this will all seem as a dream."

"And all shall be well."

They spent the next several minutes looking for the girls. Ginny was rather easy to find, due to her refusal to abandon the search for Hermione. George quickly rendered her unconscious with the twins' Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder.

"We'd better take her with us so we can keep track of them all."

"Good idea," agreed Fred. "_Locomotor Ginny!_" Their red-haired sister slowly rose from the grassy ground, her head and limbs dangling limply as if she were held by invisible strings. As the twins blazed a trail through the arboreal garden, she floated ahead of them like a specter, her head constantly lulling from side to side due to the numerous shrubs and logs they had to maneuver her over.

Finally, Fred spotted Hermione directly in their path several paces ahead. He quickly held out an arm to stop George so that they didn't alert her of their presence. She was sitting at the pace of a small tree, resting. It appeared as though she had taken advantage of the sudden and inexplicable fog to get as far away from Ginny as her body would allow. Her dress was torn and smeared with brown and green from the earth and grass, her hair was disheveled and sweaty, and her face, illuminated by the light of a few fairies skirting around, was bright red and adorned with minor lacerations. But it seemed no lasting harm had been done. The twins each breathed a sigh of relief.

"If you'll do the honors, George," Fred whispered.

"It would give me great pleasure." He crept a little closer to Hermione so that he was within throwing range of the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder and released a pinch of the black stuff with a flourish. A second later, Hermione was out cold and immediately secured in another hovering spell as George lead her out of the blackness and into the fog with Fred hanging on to his robes.

"OK well they're all out now. Can you lift this bloody fog?" George shot at Fred.

"Oh I don't know," Fred replied with a malicious grin. "I think I rather like leading you around. It's about time I got the respect I deserve. I'm pretty sure I came out first after all."

"I swear to God, you're adopted!"

"Oh right, and you aren't? How does that work exactly?"

"Mum just slips Polyjuice Potion into every one of your meals to keep up the ruse."

"Well that explains why she was at every meal at Hogwarts. Or did she enlist the house elves as agents?"

"How else do you explain how you can be so much dumber than me?"

"You know good and well that I've always been the brains behind our operations."

"Well tell me this, genius. What d'you suppose will happen to us if a certain ginger witch catches us out here because the sun's come up and we're still out here arguing like morons with this lot all indisposed?"

"Haha, surely what asses we will be if anyone bears witness to our knavery," Fred cackled gleefully, provoking an identical reaction in George as he twirled his wand and muttered, "_Illuminatus._" Soon all the fog was burnt off, and the twins laughed freely the rest of the way back to the great stump where Harry and Ron lay undisturbed.

They carefully arranged the slumbering teenagers so that it looked like they had all just sat down together and fallen asleep, surely a result of too much champagne at the wedding. Then they cast a few simple charms to repair and clean the clothes and take care of some of the scratches. George had even magiced Harry's dress robes back on. It wasn't perfect, but it looked believable for their purpose.

"Now for the final touch." George dug around in his robes for a moment before his handemerged with another vial of Gentle Lover's Remedy. "Here you are young Harry," He kneeled down and carefully placed a drop of the potion into each of his eyes. "Now you can stop acting like a bloody psychopath." The twins stepped back and took a moment to admire their handiwork.

"Not a bad night's work."

"Indeed."

"You know, the sun still doesn't rise for a couple of hours," Fred's eyes lit up with a spritely gleam. "There may still be some mischief to be managed."

"What d'you have in mind dear brother?" Asked George with a crooked grin, throwing his arm around his brother as they led themselves out of garden.

"Well Fleur's not guarding her tent anymore… perhaps we should pay our new French friends a friendly visit."

George tried to suppress his growing grin and turned to cock an eyebrow at his brother. "I do believe that may be the best idea you've had all night. Do you remember their names?"

"Mite, Pois…fllleur, er… Toile something or other, and… ah well, it's not as though I anticipate us doing much talking anyway."

"Right," George snorted. "Surely we'll be forced to use a great deal of our other talents to get passed the language barrier."

The twins' laughter slowly faded away into the night, and the garden was once again shrouded in velvety silence as the four teenagers slept blissfully in the middle of it. Hermione's head drooped unconsciously onto Harry's shoulder, where it was much more comfortable, and they all dozed through the rest of the night without stirring.

**I know that you all would probably be unhappy if this were the actual ending, but don't worry. I still have more story to tell, so there will be at least one more chapter **


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